logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2024
27m 7s

Our memories, their data - the Facebook ...

Bbc World Service
About this episode

It’s 20 years since Facebook was brought into the world by a group of Harvard University roommates. In the years since, millions of us have shared our photos, our memories, our lives…and our data.

In the early days Facebook’s mantra was ‘move fast and break things’. By last week, CEO Mark Zuckerberg was facing a US Senate hearing and accusations that the company ‘has blood on its hands’.

The BBC’s Cyber Correspondent Joe Tidy and Technology Reporter Shiona McCallum tell Katya how Facebook has changed our world. And how our feelings about Facebook have changed at the same time.

Listen: BYD - the Chinese carmaker challenging Tesla’s dominance https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/byd-the-chinese-carmaker-challenging-teslas-dominance/id1715473158?i=1000643776176

The Global Story brings you trusted insights from BBC experts around the world, with Katya Adler.

Is there a story where you are that we should telling as part of The Global Story? Email us at theglobalstory@bbc.com You can also message or leave a voice note on WhatsApp on +44 330 123 9480.

Today’s podcast was made by Richard Moran and Bethan Ashmead-Latham. The technical producer was Ricardo McCarthy. The assistant editor is Sergi Forcada Freixas. Our senior news editor is Jonathan Aspinwall.

Up next
Today
Will the Gaza ceasefire hold?
Israel and Hamas have approved President Trump’s plan for a ceasefire and approved a framework including the release of all the hostages and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from parts of Gaza. It is being described as the first phase of a wider agreement, but is the deal secure ... Show More
26m 56s
Yesterday
Australia’s mushroom killer trial
It’s been called ‘Australia's trial of the century’. Erin Patterson, the mushroom murderer, was sentenced last month and given a life sentence, but that wasn’t the end of the story. Both the prosecution and the defence are lodging competing appeals. Patterson wants her conviction ... Show More
26m 50s
Oct 8
Trump’s ‘CEO of everything’
The billionaire Larry Ellison could soon control huge portions of America’s AI, attention economy and legacy media. He already owns swathes of AI infrastructure and is preparing to takeover TikTok, whilst his son, whose company already owns Paramount, is preparing a deal to buy W ... Show More
26m 19s
Recommended Episodes
Nov 2022
Watching Facebook Burn
For almost two decades, Facebook has dominated headlines and the lives of its users. It’s been blamed for genocides, pointed to as a vector of disinformation, and depressed you as you scrolled past high school acquaintances that seem to be doing so much better than you.  But now ... Show More
47m 49s
Jul 2023
Peak social media: The ads machine
Mark Zuckerberg used advertising to turn Facebook into the first global social media giant, boasting 3bn users around the world. But today there are questions about the business model that has powered it for the past 15 years, and what Zuckerberg’s new focus on building the Metav ... Show More
27m 5s
Sep 2021
Facebook's Content Moderators Are Leaving Their Jobs With PTSD
If you’re on Facebook then there’s a company you’ve probably never heard of that makes it bearable. Accenture. The little-known consulting firm is one of the biggest companies in the booming market of content moderation. But you’ll probably never hear its name come out of the lip ... Show More
39m 46s
Feb 2022
Facebook’s very bad month
Ever since Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook from his Harvard dorm room, he's been focused on growth — more users in more places, until the entire world is connected. But in February, Meta, the social media platform’s parent company, reported some concerning news: for the first t ... Show More
18m 43s
Oct 2021
The Facebook Whistle-Blower Testifies
The Senate testimony of Frances Haugen on Tuesday was an eagerly awaited event.Last month, Ms. Haugen, a former Facebook product manager, leaked internal company documents to The Wall Street Journal that exposed the social media giant’s inner workings.How will Ms. Haugen’s insigh ... Show More
28m 32s
Feb 2024
20 ans après, Facebook a-t-il vraiment changé nos vies?
 Les excuses du patron de Facebook, 20 ans après la création du réseau social. Devant le Sénat américain, Mark Zuckerberg, interpellé sur les dangers des réseaux sociaux pour les enfants et les ados, s'est excusé auprès des victimes des dérives de Facebook. Lors de l'audition, él ... Show More
17m 11s
Feb 2021
The ‘Facebook revolutions’ that weren’t
Social media was how many of us consumed the 2011 Arab uprisings. Technology was putting power in the hands of the people. To use social media in 2021, especially in the Middle East, is to navigate a maze of internet laws, surveillance, censorship, fake news, and bots. With Faceb ... Show More
18m 14s
Nov 2021
Pourquoi Facebook est accusé de diviser pour prospérer
Cet automne, plusieurs enquêtes éclaboussent Facebook dans la presse américaine et internationale. Elles mettent en cause la façon dont le réseau social modère les contenus postés et partagés par ses milliards d’utilisateurs. De nombreux documents révèlent notamment que les algor ... Show More
19m 7s